2020 CONCACAF League

The 2020 CONCACAF League (officially the 2020 Scotiabank CONCACAF League for sponsorship purposes) will be the 4th edition of the CONCACAF League, a football club competition organized by CONCACAF, the regional governing body of North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.[1]

2020 CONCACAF League
2020 Scotiabank CONCACAF League
Tournament details
DatesTBA (originally July – November 2020)
Teams22 (from 10 or 11 associations)

The winners of the 2020 CONCACAF League and the next best five teams will qualify for the 2021 CONCACAF Champions League.[2] Saprissa are the title holders.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, CONCACAF announced on 23 June 2020 that the start of the tournament, which was scheduled to begin on 28 July 2020, had been postponed.[3]

Qualification

A total of 22 teams participate in the CONCACAF League:

Therefore, teams from either 10 or 11 out of the 41 CONCACAF member associations may participate in the CONCACAF League.

North America

The one berth for the North American Zone (NAFU) is allocated to the Canadian Soccer Association through the Canadian Premier League, where the champions of the Finals, contested between the Spring and Fall season champions, qualify.[4] They are the second Canadian representative included in CONCACAF competitions, besides the Canadian Championship champions which qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League.

Central America

The 18 berths for the Central American Football Union (UNCAF), which consists of seven member associations, are allocated as follows: three berths for each of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, two berths for Nicaragua, and one berth for Belize.

All of the leagues of Central America employ a split season with two tournaments in one season, so the following teams qualify for the CONCACAF League:

  • In the league of Costa Rica, both champions, and the non-champions with the best aggregate record, qualify. If there is any team which are champions of both tournaments, the non-champions with the second best aggregate record qualify.
  • In the leagues of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Panama, both champions, and the runners-up with the better aggregate record (or any team which are runners-up of both tournaments), qualify. If there is any team which are finalists of both tournaments, the runners-up with the worse aggregate record qualify. If there are any two teams which are finalists of both tournaments, the semi-finalists with the best aggregate record qualify.
  • In the league of Nicaragua, both champions qualify. If there is any team which are champions of both tournaments, the runners-up with the better aggregate record (or any team which are runners-up of both tournaments) qualify.
  • In the league of Belize, the champions with the better aggregate record (or any team which are champions of both tournaments) qualify.

If teams from any Central American associations are excluded, they are replaced by teams from other Central American associations, with the associations chosen based on results from previous CONCACAF League and CONCACAF Champions League tournaments.[5]

Caribbean

The three berths for the Caribbean Football Union (CFU), which consists of 31 member associations, are allocated via the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship and CONCACAF Caribbean Club Shield, the first-tier and second-tier subcontinental Caribbean club tournaments. Since 2018, the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship is open to teams from professional leagues, where they can qualify as champions or runners-up of their respective association's league in the previous season, while the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Shield is open to teams from non-professional leagues, where they can qualify as champions of their respective association's league in the previous season.[6]

Besides the champions of the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship which qualify for the CONCACAF Champions League, the runners-up and third-placed team of the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship, and the winners of a playoff between the fourth-placed team of the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship and the champions of the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Shield, qualify for the CONCACAF League. For the champions of the CONCACAF Caribbean Club Shield to be eligible for the playoff, they must comply with the minimum CONCACAF Club Licensing requirements for the CONCACAF League.[7]

Teams

The following 22 teams (from ten or eleven associations) qualify for the tournament.

  • Ten teams enter in the round of 16: two each from Costa Rica, Honduras, and Panama, and one each from El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and the Caribbean.
  • Twelve teams enter in the preliminary round: two each from El Salvador, Guatemala, and the Caribbean, and one each from Canada, Costa Rica, Honduras, Panama, Nicaragua, and Belize.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the deadline for registration had been extended to 28 June 2020.[8]

Qualified teams from North America (1 team: entering in preliminary round)
Association Team Entry round Qualifying method App (Last) Previous best (Last)
 Canada (1 PR berth) Forge FC Preliminary round 2019 Canadian Premier League Finals champions 2nd (2019) Round of 16 (2019)
Qualified teams from Central America (18 teams: 9 entering in round of 16, 9 entering in preliminary round)
Association Team Entry round Qualifying method App (Last) Previous best (Last)
 Costa Rica (3 berths: 2 R16 + 1 PR) Herediano Round of 16 Champions with worse 2019–20 aggregate record (2019 Apertura) 3rd (2019) Champions (2018)
Alajuelense Round of 16 or Preliminary round Champions with better 2019–20 aggregate record (2020 Clausura)
or Non-champions with best 2019–20 aggregate record		 2nd (2017) Round of 16 (2017)
Saprissa Round of 16 or Preliminary round Champions with better 2019–20 aggregate record (2020 Clausura)
or Non-champions with best 2019–20 aggregate record		 2nd (2019) Champions (2019)
 Honduras (3 berths: 2 R16 + 1 PR) Olimpia Round of 16 2019 Apertura champions[Note HON] 3rd (2019) Champions (2017)
Marathón Round of 16 Non-champions with best 2019–20 aggregate record[Note HON] 2nd (2019) Preliminary round (2019)
Motagua Preliminary round Non-champions with 2nd best 2019–20 aggregate record[Note HON] 3rd (2019) Runners-up (2019)
 Panama (3 berths: 2 R16 + 1 PR) Tauro Round of 16 2019 Apertura champions[Note PAN] 3rd (2019) Semi-finals (2018)
San Francisco Round of 16 Non-champions with best 2019–20 aggregate record[Note PAN] 2nd (2019) Preliminary round (2019)
Independiente Preliminary round Non-champions with 2nd best 2019–20 aggregate record[Note PAN] 2nd (2019) Quarter-finals (2019)
 El Salvador (3 berths: 1 R16 + 2 PR) Alianza Round of 16 2019 Apertura champions[Note SLV] 3rd (2019) Semi-finals (2019)
FAS Preliminary round Non-champions with best 2019–20 aggregate record[Note SLV] 2nd (2018) Quarter-finals (2018)
Municipal Limeño Preliminary round Non-champions with 2nd best 2019–20 aggregate record[Note SLV] 1st Debut
 Guatemala (3 berths: 1 R16 + 2 PR) Municipal Round of 16 2019 Apertura champions[Note GUA] 1st Debut
Comunicaciones Preliminary round Non-champions with best 2019–20 aggregate record[Note GUA] 2nd (2019) Quarter-finals (2019)
Antigua GFC Preliminary round Non-champions with 2nd best 2019–20 aggregate record[Note GUA] 2nd (2019) Preliminary round (2019)
 Nicaragua (2 berths: 1 R16 + 1 PR) Real Estelí Round of 16 2019 Apertura and 2020 Clausura champions 3rd (2019) Round of 16 (2017)
Managua Preliminary round 2019 Apertura and 2020 Clausura runners-up 2nd (2019) Round of 16 (2019)
 Belize (1 PR berth) Verdes Preliminary round 2019 Opening champions[Note BLZ] 1st Debut
Qualified teams from Caribbean (3 teams: 1 entering in round of 16, 2 entering in preliminary round)
Association Team Entry round Qualifying method App (Last) Previous best (Last)
  TBD Round of 16 2020 CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship runners-up
  TBD Preliminary round 2020 CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship third place
  TBD Preliminary round 2020 Caribbean CONCACAF League playoff winners
Notes
  1. ^
    Belize (BLZ): The 2020 Closing tournament of the 2019–20 Premier League of Belize season was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Belize, and the title was not awarded. The team which will represent the Football Federation of Belize in the 2020 CONCACAF League are Verdes (entering preliminary round), the 2019 Opening champions and also the team with best 2019–20 aggregate record at the time of suspension.[9]
  2. ^
    El Salvador (SLV): The 2020 Clausura tournament of the 2019–20 Primera División de El Salvador season was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in El Salvador, and the title was not awarded. The three teams which will represent the Salvadoran Football Federation in the 2020 CONCACAF League are Alianza (entering round of 16), the 2019 Apertura champions, FAS (entering preliminary round), the non-champions with best 2019–20 aggregate record at the time of suspension, and Municipal Limeño (entering preliminary round), the non-champions with 2nd best 2019–20 aggregate record at the time of suspension (Once Deportivo, the 2020 Clausura regular season best team at the time of suspension, were originally declared 2020 Clausura champions but the title and spot in the 2020 CONCACAF League were later retracted).[10][11][12]
  3. ^
    Guatemala (GUA): The 2020 Clausura tournament of the 2019–20 Liga Nacional de Guatemala season was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Guatemala, and the title was not awarded. The three teams which will represent the National Football Federation of Guatemala in the 2020 CONCACAF League are Municipal (entering round of 16), the 2019 Apertura champions, Comunicaciones (entering preliminary round), the non-champions with best 2019–20 aggregate record at the time of suspension, and Antigua GFC (entering preliminary round), the non-champions with 2nd best 2019–20 aggregate record at the time of suspension.[13]
  4. ^
    Honduras (HON): The 2020 Clausura tournament of the 2019–20 Honduran Liga Nacional season was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Honduras, and the title was not awarded. The three teams which will represent the National Autonomous Federation of Football of Honduras in the 2020 CONCACAF League are Olimpia (entering round of 16), the 2019 Apertura champions, Marathón (entering round of 16), the non-champions with best 2019–20 aggregate record at the time of suspension, and Motagua (entering preliminary round), the non-champions with 2nd best 2019–20 aggregate record at the time of suspension.[14]
  5. ^
    Panama (PAN): The 2020 Apertura tournament of the 2019–20 Liga Panameña de Fútbol season was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Panama, and the title was not awarded. The three teams which will represent the Panamanian Football Federation in the 2020 CONCACAF League are Tauro (entering round of 16), the 2019 Apertura champions, San Francisco (entering round of 16), the non-champions with best 2019–20 aggregate record at the time of suspension, and Independiente (entering preliminary round), the non-champions with 2nd best 2019–20 aggregate record at the time of suspension.[15][16]

Draw

Location of teams of the 2020 CONCACAF League
North American Zone
Location of teams of the 2020 CONCACAF League
Central American Zone Caribbean Zone
Teams in bold enter in the round of 16

The draw for the 2020 CONCACAF League will be held in summer 2020.

The draw determines each tie in the preliminary round (numbered 1 through 6) between a team from Pot 1 and a team from Pot 2, each containing six teams. The "Bracket Position Pots" (Pot A and Pot B) contains the bracket positions numbered 1 through 6 corresponding to each tie. The teams from Pot 1 are assigned a bracket position from Pot A and the teams from Pot 2 are assigned a bracket position from Pot B. Teams from the same association cannot be drawn against each other in the preliminary round except for "wildcard" teams which replace a team from another association.

The draw also determines each tie in the round of 16 (numbered 1 through 8) between a team from Pot 3 and a team from Pot 4, each containing eight teams, with the six preliminary round winners, whose identity is not known at the time of the draw, in Pot 4. The "Bracket Position Pots" (Pot A and Pot B) contains the bracket positions numbered 1 through 8 corresponding to each tie. The teams from Pot 3 are assigned a bracket position from Pot A and the teams from Pot 4 are assigned a bracket position from Pot B.

The seeding of teams are based on the CONCACAF Club Index. The CONCACAF Club Index, instead of ranking each team, is based on the on-field performance of the teams that have occupied the respective qualifying slots in the previous five editions of the CONCACAF League and CONCACAF Champions League. To determine the total points awarded to a slot in any single edition of the CONCACAF League or CONCACAF Champions League, CONCACAF uses the following formula:

Points per Participation Win Draw Stage advanced Champions
CONCACAF Champions League (2015–16 – 2019) 4 3 1 1 2
CONCACAF League (2017 – 2019) 2 3 1 0.5 1

Teams qualify for the CONCACAF League based on criteria set by their association (e.g., tournament champions, runners-up, cup champions), resulting in an assigned slot (e.g., CRC1, CRC2) for each team.

The 22 teams are distributed in the pots as follows:

Teams in preliminary round draw
Pot Rank Slot 2015–16 CCL 2016–17 CCL 2017 CL or
2018 CCL		 2018 CL or
2019 CCL		 2019 CL Total Team
Pot 1 1 CRC3 0 0 2 19.5 27 48.5 [CRC]
2 SLV2 6 5 11.5 5 7.5 35 FAS
3 SLV3 0 0 8.5 6.5 16.5 31.5 Municipal Limeño
4 PAN3 0 0 11 15 2 28 Independiente
5 HON3 0 0 2 21.5 3 26.5 Motagua
6 CCC3 5 4 5 5.5 4 23.5
Pot 2 7 BLZ1 8 4 2 2 2 18 Verdes
8 GUA2 8 6 0 0 3 17 Comunicaciones
9 NCA2 0 0 9.5 2 5 16.5 Managua
10 CCC4 0 0 2 5 5.5 12.5
11 GUA3 0 0 0 0 12 12 Antigua GFC
12 CAN2 0 0 0 0 9.5 9.5 Forge FC
Teams in round of 16 draw
Pot Rank Slot 2015–16 CCL 2016–17 CCL 2017 CL or
2018 CCL		 2018 CL or
2019 CCL		 2019 CL Total Team
Pot 3 1 PAN1 10 20 8 12 5 55 Tauro
2 HON1 10 11 5 4 16.5 46.5 Olimpia
3 PAN2 10 8 13 8.5 6.5 46 San Francisco
4 HON2 11 11 2 3 13 40 Marathón
5 CRC1 10 8 5 7 7.5 37.5 [CRC]
6 CRC2 9 14 5 3 4 35 Herediano
7 SLV1 7 9 7 5 5 33 Alianza
8 CCC2 7 5 2 5 5.5 24.5
Pot 4 9 GUA1 8 9 0 4 3 24 Municipal
10 NCA1 4 6 5 5.5 3 23.5 Real Estelí
11 Winner preliminary round 1
12 Winner preliminary round 2
13 Winner preliminary round 3
14 Winner preliminary round 4
15 Winner preliminary round 5
16 Winner preliminary round 6
Notes
  1. ^ a b
    CRC
    • Alajuelense will qualify as CRC1 (round of 16) if they are 2020 Clausura champions, otherwise they will qualify as CRC3 (preliminary round).
    • Saprissa will qualify as CRC1 (round of 16) if they are 2020 Clausura champions, otherwise they will qualify as CRC3 (preliminary round).

Qualification to CONCACAF Champions League

Starting from the round of 16, teams are ranked based on their results (excluding preliminary round). Based on the ranking, the top six teams, i.e., champions, runners-up, both losing semi-finalists, and best two losing quarter-finalists, qualify for the 2021 CONCACAF Champions League.

See also

References
  1. "Details revealed for newly launched Scotiabank CONCACAF League". CONCACAF League. 8 May 2017.
  2. "Concacaf Announces Scotiabank Concacaf League Expansion". www.concacafleague.com. 11 February 2019. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  3. "Concacaf Statement – 2020 Scotiabank Concacaf League". Scotiabank Concacaf League. 23 June 2020.
  4. "A guide to the format for the 2019 season". Canadian Premier League. 25 April 2019.
  5. "Stage Set for Miami Draw for Second Edition of the Scotiabank Concacaf League". Scotiabank CONCACAF League. 18 May 2018.
  6. "CONCACAF Announces Expanded CONCACAF Caribbean Club Championship for 2018". CONCACAF. 15 December 2017.
  7. "Dominican Republic Selected to Host Inaugural CONCACAF Caribbean Club Shield". CONCACAF.com. 16 February 2018.
  8. "Concacaf pospone fecha de inscripción para Liga Concacaf 2020". Goal.com. 10 April 2020.
  9. "Basketball (NEBL) and football (PLB) leagues cancel ongoing seasons". breakingbelizenews.com. 18 April 2020.
  10. "FESFUT suspende de manera definitiva el Clausura 2020 de la primera división". elgrafico.com. 19 March 2020.
  11. "FESFUT ya no reconoce al Once Deportivo como campeón y congela el descenso y ascenso". elgrafico.com. 29 April 2020.
  12. "FESFUT rectifica: Municipal Limeño será el tercer representante en Liga CONCACAF". elgrafico.com. 29 May 2020.
  13. "Así confirmó la Fedefut a los equipos clasificados a la Liga Concacaf". guatefutbol.com. 23 May 2020.
  14. "Oficial: Liga Nacional de Honduras declara finalizado el Clausura; no hay campeón ni descendido". diez.hn. 29 April 2020.
  15. "FEPAFUT da por finalizado el Torneo Apertura 2020 de la LPF". fepafut.com. 17 March 2020.
  16. "Clasificados de la LPF a la Liga Concacaf Scotiabank 2020". fepafut.com. 2 June 2020.
  17. "Concacaf Club Index 2019" (PDF). CONCACAF.
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